Two longtime GOP operatives who were once aligned with Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign admitted Tuesday they accepted money from the Qatari government in exchange for their efforts to sway U.S. foreign policy, and engaged in a scheme to deceive the Department of Justice about their work, POLITICO reported.
Barry Bennett and Doug Watts reportedly acknowledged in court filings that they accepted cash from Qatari officials in exchange for their lobbying on the country’s behalf to influence U.S. policy in the Middle East.
Specifically, the outlet reported that Bennett and Watts set up an organization at Qatar’s behest called “Yemen Crisis Watch” to bring attention to alleged brutality by the Saudi Arabian government against the Houthi militant group in Yemen.
The admissions were revealed in a federal Washington courthouse nearly simultaneously with new federal charges dropping against Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), accusing the embattled politician of similar behavior.
Unlike Menendez, however, Bennett and Watts aren’t denying the allegations against them. Instead, both men agreed to “deferred prosecution” agreements that would get them out of the charges after a period of time, given they both comply with the terms of their respective deals. Bennett has agreed to pay a $100,000 fine, and Watts agreed to fork over $25,000, POLITICO reported.
The men also agreed to abstain from lobbying or doing public relations work covered by the Foreign Agents Registration Act for an entire year.
The operatives, who joined pro-Trump efforts in 2016 after they ditched the sputtering campaign of Ben Carson, are charged with scheming to conceal their work for a foreign government and making false statements about that work.